Book 3 of Wingfeather was by
far the slowest paced book so far in the series…except when it wasn’t. I
finished one book I started after Wingfeather
simply because this was a slower build-up, but moreso, because The Bark of the Bog Owl and A Wise Man’s Fear were really captivating.
Had I known what the ending of The Monster in the Hollows would have been like, I
might have shifted the order. The ending was so good I skipped books I was
already reading to launch into the final book The Warden and the Wolf King. What I enjoyed most was the Tolkien-style launching into multiple stories at one time. Much of the story has
surrounded Janner, but for a few brief chapters we started following Sara
Cobbler. Just the small departure showed that Peterson was able to risk the
formula for the development of the story, which I greatly appreciated.
Another enjoyable piece of this work was playing on the book title.
Often times the book title can be cleverly found at a distinct part of the
novel. Here it is played with throughout. Who or what is the monster? Is it
that person? Is it this thing? Just when you are settled into your
understanding of the monster it shifts because the basket your eggs were in
just slowly unraveled…which is messy because now you only have your hands or
maybe the bottom of your shirt to carry your eggs in.
The long, slow build-up of tension in the Green Hollows eventually led
to a great ending by Peterson. He gives you puzzle pieces that you may have
discounted as random facts until you start piecing together the ending. Oh that
quirky thing that such and such character can do…yeah, it’s important and not
trivial. Oh…that thing that you know happened, and you hated it…well, it was
for a much bigger purpose than you ever could have anticipated. Without giving
too much away it is fair to say that this is the emotionally satisfying and
heartbreaking book of the series so far. It also holds a lot more angst as
Janner grows into his identity and the other characters make similar strides.
One thing that I found difficult, although, if I were to be honest
helped me understand Kalmar a little more were a few illustrations in the book.
The illustration of Janner was a bit frustrating, but to see just how wolf-like
Kalmar was helped inform the story. When kids tease him, and people gawk at
Kalmar you begin to wonder just what he looks like. Seeing him illustrated
helps you understand, “Oh my. You are basically a wolf that can walk on two
legs.” This reminded me of my friend Julia when she told me she did not want to
watch the Harry Potter movies. She had in her head a distinct visualization of
the character that she did not want to adjust…I get that now.
My friends the Webbs told me that Wingfeather would become one of my
favorite book series. After the first book I doubted, after the second I still
doubted. After the third…I am starting to change my mind and look forward to
the conclusion of the series.
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